Public Health & Systems Researcher

Public Health & Systems Researcher

Salary: Band 11 - £45,718 - £49,764 p.a.

Permanent

37 hours per week

Who are we?

In partnership with the University of Portsmouth and HIVE Portsmouth, PCC has been successful in securing funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) for 5 years to build the evidence use within the council and its commissioned services. This involves building on the evaluation skills that exist, and applying new learning and critical evaluative approaches to the way we work and learn. The post will sit with the SDS team, who already work with teams to critically evaluate services to support service redesign. This role will give the team greater capacity to evaluate their own approaches and the longitudinal impact of their work, as well as collaborating on the development of an evaluation framework that suits Local Authority contexts.

The SDS is a small team of interventionists which sits within the Housing, Neighbourhood, and Buildings (HNB) Directorate. The team's purpose is to explain, demonstrate, and embed systems thinking approaches to the design and management of work within PCC. The work of the team is demand-led - we are typically commissioned by senior leaders in our client services, either because their services have a problem that they want assistance with, or sometimes simply because they've been made aware of our work and are curious to learn more.

What is the role?

This is a new role, created to help PCC and its partners to progress their work under the Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC). This is a programme funded by the National Institute for Health & Care Research (NIHR) aimed at boosting research capacity and capability within local government.

The postholder will join SDS and support the team with a range of research-related activities in order to help us better understand:

1. existing and emerging health inequalities in the city;
2. the impact of current policies and programmes on outcomes for residents;
3. current and emerging research in all health-related areas that the team encounter; and,
4. the impact of outcomes for residents resulting from changes to service provision over time.

Owing to the nature of the role and how varied the work is, there is probably no 'typical day', but the constant throughout the work will be continuously learning more about public health, systems thinking in public services, and how to effectively study and redesign service systems for the benefit of our residents. The role is mentally and emotionally challenging, but can also be incredibly rewarding as the team have the opportunity to help colleagues tackle some of the most intractable problems in public services.

Who is the person?

The role is suitable for anyone with a strong research background who is keen to use their skills and experience to help inform improvements in public services.

You need to have:

• Demonstrable skills and knowledge of research and evaluation methods, including engaging with academic literature.
• Experience of working in a research environment, applied to public health, social care or other Local Authority-relevant contexts.
• Insight into the challenges of research and evaluation in complex contexts and relevant methodological debates.
• Concern/Insight/willingness to consider the experience of people impacted by wider determinants of health.
• willingness to be proactive and seizing opportunities, driving excellence, engaging with the council's objectives, and furthering the professional development of yourself and colleagues.
• Demonstrable strengths in collaborative working supported by a desire to build strong and effective relationships that make a positive difference in people's lives.
• Effective communication with a wide range of partners.
• Experience of project management and delivery to deadlines.
• Educated to Master's level (MSc) in Public Health, Epidemiology, Social Sciences or related discipline or holding professional qualification/equivalent experience in a research/evaluation role.
• A genuine desire to learn how to apply systems thinking in local government.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence.
• Excellent presentational skills and the ability to engage a wide range of audiences.
• High levels of literacy and numeracy; and,
• Excellent skills in using the MS Office suite of applications.

If you have any questions, or would like an informal discussion about the role, please contact Dave Adams at David.adams@portsmouthcc.gov.uk

When completing the application form, please thoroughly tailor your application to the 'Who is the Person' points with the use of examples from your experience and attach this as a cover letter in the Supporting Documents section. This is really important or you are likely not to be shortlisted.

Closing date: 19th December 2024

We are a disability confident employer - committed to ensuring that our recruitment and selection process is inclusive and accessible and welcome applications from all areas of society.

We really appreciate our employees and fully realise they are essential to our success and look to offer an inclusive, supportive working environment where employees can reach their potentials with a healthy work life balance, offering the following rewards:

• A generous pension scheme.
• Up to 31 days annual leave per year pro rata + bank holidays.
• We offer flexible working options including hybrid working with a minimum of two days office based per week pro rata, giving you the flexibility to work up to three days at home every week. Hybrid working is dependent on the role and service needs, exact details will be discussed with you at interview.
• A range of retail discounts via our reward portal offering discounts at retailers including IKEA, Currys, Tesco.
• Free Access to Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and wellbeing support.
• Access to a wide range of training and development opportunities including apprenticeships.
• Potential to purchase additional annual leave.
• Business travel support and initiatives, including bike loans.

Click HERE to see all the benefits of working with us!

Should you require any support in completing the application form please contact recruit@portsmouthcc.gov.uk